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Nutrients May 2022Northern Indigenous communities require collaborative approaches to health communication about food that are grounded in Indigenous knowledges and cultures; however,...
Northern Indigenous communities require collaborative approaches to health communication about food that are grounded in Indigenous knowledges and cultures; however, preferences and best methods for this process remain understudied. This participatory study discusses how Inuvialuit (Inuit from the Western Arctic) knowledge and the perspectives of territorial, regional, and local dietary message stakeholders can inform the co-development of culture-centered dietary messaging to support healthy, safe, and culturally appropriate diets in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. A community researcher in Tuktoyaktuk conducted storytelling interviews with country food knowledge holders ( = 7) and community members ( = 3), and a talking circle with local public health dietary message disseminators ( = 2) in June-July 2021. The lead author conducted key informant telephone and videoconference interviews with territorial and regional dietary message disseminators ( = 5) in June 2021. Interviews were coded and analyzed thematically. Our findings indicate that participants at all levels support increased inclusion of cultural and community perspectives about food to develop regionally and locally tailored dietary messaging. While most dietary message stakeholders wish to be involved in co-development processes, some country food knowledge holders in Tuktoyaktuk expressed a desire to lead local communications about country foods. Informed by participants' experiences and needs, we provide recommendations for future community-led approaches to further (co-)develop and communicate effective, culturally meaningful dietary messaging that promotes Inuvialuit food sovereignty.
Topics: Arctic Regions; Diet; Humans; Northwest Territories
PubMed: 35565882
DOI: 10.3390/nu14091915 -
Episodes of Diversification and Isolation in Island Southeast Asian and Near Oceanian Male Lineages.Molecular Biology and Evolution Mar 2022Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) and Oceania host one of the world's richest assemblages of human phenotypic, linguistic, and cultural diversity. Despite this, the region's...
Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) and Oceania host one of the world's richest assemblages of human phenotypic, linguistic, and cultural diversity. Despite this, the region's male genetic lineages are globally among the last to remain unresolved. We compiled ∼9.7 Mb of Y chromosome (chrY) sequence from a diverse sample of over 380 men from this region, including 152 first reported here. The granularity of this data set allows us to fully resolve and date the regional chrY phylogeny. This new high-resolution tree confirms two main population bursts: multiple rapid diversifications following the region's initial settlement ∼50 kya, and extensive expansions <6 kya. Notably, ∼40-25 kya the deep rooting local lineages of C-M130, M-P256, and S-B254 show almost no further branching events in ISEA, New Guinea, and Australia, matching a similar pause in diversification seen in maternal mitochondrial DNA lineages. The main local lineages start diversifying ∼25 kya, at the time of the last glacial maximum. This improved chrY topology highlights localized events with important historical implications, including pre-Holocene contact between Mainland and ISEA, potential interactions between Australia and the Papuan world, and a sustained period of diversification following the flooding of the ancient Sunda and Sahul continents as the insular landscape observed today formed. The high-resolution phylogeny of the chrY presented here thus enables a detailed exploration of past isolation, interaction, and change in one of the world's least understood regions.
Topics: Asia, Southeastern; Asian People; DNA, Mitochondrial; Humans; Male; Mitochondria; Phylogeny
PubMed: 35294555
DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac045 -
Genes Dec 2022The Chakouyi horse is an ancient Chinese indigenous horse breed distributed in Gansu Province in northwestern China, and is also one of the key breeds protected by the...
The Chakouyi horse is an ancient Chinese indigenous horse breed distributed in Gansu Province in northwestern China, and is also one of the key breeds protected by the government. However, the origin of the Chakouyi horse remains unclear. As it is distributed in a key region of the Silk Road, it was speculated that the origin of the Chakouyi horse might involve the foreign horse breeds found along this ancient commercial artery. In this study, whole-genome resequencing data of 12 horse breeds, including both indigenous and foreign horses, were applied to reveal the genetic relationships between the Chakouyi horse and other breeds, as well as the ancestry of this ancient breed. An analysis of the population structure and admixture showed that there is no close genetic affinity between the Chakouyi horse and the foreign horses while Chinese indigenous horse populations were grouped together in accordance with their geographic locations, and the Chakouyi horse showed a closer relationship with Kazak horses, Mongolian horses, and Tibetan horses. The results from the ancestral composition prediction indicated that the Kazak horse and the Mongolian horse might be two ancestors of the Chakouyi horse. Furthermore, the genome-wide selection signature analysis revealed that the DMRT3 gene was positively selected in the Chakouyi horse and related to the gait trait of the breed. Our results provide insights into the native origin of the Chakouyi horse and indicate that Kazak and Mongolian horses played important roles in the formation of the Chakouyi horse. Genetic communication between the Chakouyi horse and other horse populations could be attributed, at least partially, to population migrations and trade activities along the ancient commercial routes.
Topics: Animals; Horses; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; Genome; China; Phenotype; Sequence Analysis, DNA
PubMed: 36553682
DOI: 10.3390/genes13122411 -
JAMA Pediatrics Sep 2017Timely and efficient access to hospital care is essential for the health and well-being of children. As insurance networks, accountable care organizations, and...
IMPORTANCE
Timely and efficient access to hospital care is essential for the health and well-being of children. As insurance networks, accountable care organizations, and alternative payment methods evolve, these new systems of care must continue to serve the needs of children.
OBJECTIVE
To test the hypothesis that the availability of definitive pediatric hospital care is significantly more limited than adult care and is decreasing disproportionately.
DESIGN
This study used case mix data during fiscal years 2004 through 2014 to measure transfer frequency and identify the site of care completion for all patients seen in acute care hospitals throughout Massachusetts. Patterns of care among children were then compared with patterns of care among adults. Participants were all patients seen in an emergency department or admitted to a hospital from 2004 through 2014, including more than 34 million encounters.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Hospital Capability Index and Regionalization Index for all acute care hospitals and all conditions within the Clinical Classifications Software of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.
RESULTS
Over the study period, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts hospital system was composed of 66 acute care hospitals. After excluding newborns and mental health conditions, there were 34 511 312 encounters, with 25 226 014 emergency department visits and 9 285 298 observation or full admissions. From 2004 through 2014, care for adults and children concentrated among hospitals but much more so for pediatric care. The number of children requiring care in more than one hospital increased 36.2% (from 7190 to 9793). The median (interquartile range [IQR]) Hospital Capability Index, reflecting the likelihood of a hospital completing a patient's care without transfer, decreased 10.8% (from 0.74 [IQR, 0.65-0.81] to 0.66 [IQR, 0.53-0.76]) for adult care and 65.0% (0.20 [IQR, 0.05-0.34] to 0.07 [IQR, 0.01-0.23]) for pediatric care. Almost all of the shift was from nonacademic to academic hospitals. The median Regionalization Index, reflecting the degree to which care for specific conditions is regionalized, was very high for pediatric conditions and further increased from 0.79 (IQR, 0.67-0.91) to 0.87 (IQR, 0.80-0.91). Over the same decade, the mean Regionalization Index for adult conditions was low and increased modestly from 0.25 (IQR, 0.14-0.39) to 0.32 (IQR, 0.19-0.46). Among pediatric conditions, more than 75% were highly regionalized in 2014 compared with fewer than 50% in 2004.
CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
Pediatric hospital care has become increasingly concentrated, and many children with common conditions are now less frequently treated in the community. This finding has significant implications for systemwide capacity management and should be specifically accounted for in public health activities, disaster planning, and determinations of network adequacy.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Child; Child, Preschool; Diagnosis-Related Groups; Health Services Accessibility; Hospitalization; Hospitals, Pediatric; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Massachusetts
PubMed: 28692729
DOI: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2017.1096 -
PloS One 2020There is much variation in hospice use with respect to geographic factors such as area-based deprivation, location of patient's residence and proximity to services... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
BACKGROUND
There is much variation in hospice use with respect to geographic factors such as area-based deprivation, location of patient's residence and proximity to services location. However, little is known about how the association between geographic access to inpatient hospice and hospice deaths varies by patients' region of settlement.
STUDY AIM
To examine regional differences in the association between geographic access to inpatient hospice and hospice deaths.
METHODS
A regional population-based observational study in England, UK. Records of patients aged ≥ 25 years (n = 123088) who died from non-accidental causes in 2014, were extracted from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) death registry. Our cohort comprised of patients who died at home and in inpatient hospice. Decedents were allocated to each of the nine government office regions of England (London, East Midlands, West Midlands, East, Yorkshire and The Humber, South West, South East, North West and North East) through record linkage with their postcode of usual residence. We defined geographic access as a measure of drive times from patients' residential location to the nearest inpatient hospice. A modified Poisson regression estimated the association between geographic access to hospice, comparing hospice deaths (1) versus home deaths (0). We developed nine regional specific models and adjusted for regional differences in patient's clinical & socio-demographic characteristics. The strength of the association was estimated with adjusted Proportional Ratios (aPRs).
FINDINGS
The percentage of deaths varied across regions (home: 86.7% in the North East to 73.0% in the South East; hospice: 13.3% in the North East to 27.0% in the South East). We found wide differences in geographic access to inpatient hospices across regions. Median drive times to hospice varied from 4.6 minutes in London to 25.9 minutes in the North East. We found a dose-response association in the East: (aPRs: 0.22-0.78); East Midlands: (aPRs: 0.33-0.63); North East (aPRs: 0.19-0.87); North West (aPRs: 0.69-0.88); South West (aPRs: 0.56-0.89) and West Midlands (aPRs: 0.28-0.92) indicating that decedents who lived further away from hospices locations (≥ 10 minutes) were less likely to die in a hospice.
CONCLUSION
The clear dose-response associations in six regions underscore the importance of regional specific initiatives to improve and optimise access to hospices. Commissioners and policymakers need to do more to ensure that home death is not due to limited geographic access to inpatient hospice care.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; England; Female; Geography; Health Services Accessibility; Health Services Needs and Demand; Hospices; Hospital Mortality; Hospitalization; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Palliative Care; Registries
PubMed: 32302344
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0231666 -
BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.) Sep 1994
Topics: Administrative Personnel; Africa; Budgets; Health Expenditures; Humans; World Health Organization
PubMed: 8086938
DOI: 10.1136/bmj.309.6954.553 -
International Journal of Environmental... Aug 2022The development of a regionally integrated economy promotes the development of river basin ecological compensation toward cross-regional coordinated governance. The...
The development of a regionally integrated economy promotes the development of river basin ecological compensation toward cross-regional coordinated governance. The ecological compensation in the Yangtze River Delta has developed by leaps and bounds, which is conducive to the research on the collaborative governance mechanism. Taking the ecological compensation policy data in the Yangtze River Delta as the research object, and using the social network analysis method, this paper analyzes the current situation of cross-basin cooperation in the Yangtze River Delta. A collaborative governance network is formed with 74 ecological compensation agreements, and the distribution law of the overall collaborative network is found. Using IAD to decompose the ecological compensation agreement rules, 303 institutional units were obtained, of which, 198 were selection rules, accounting for 65%. The research results show that: (1) The ecological compensation cooperation in the Yangtze River Delta region is mainly concentrated in the Jiaxing Jiashan, Wujiang District, Suzhou, and Qingpu District, Shanghai, forming a close cooperation triangle network, and Shanghai plays a strong "intermediary" role in it. (2) In institutional grammar analysis, the formulation of rules is biased toward choice rules and payoff rules, that is to say, the content of the rules is mostly how to cooperate and how to reward and punish but there is a lack of specific action scenarios and standards. The combination of social network and institutional analysis and development framework is conducive to the study of the ecological collaborative governance mechanism of the Yangtze River Delta, breaking the gap between different fields and regions, enhancing the enthusiasm for multi-subject governance in the Yangtze River Delta region, and giving full play to the effectiveness of multi-subject governance.
Topics: China; Rivers
PubMed: 36011518
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19169881 -
Scientific Reports May 2021Site productivity remains a fundamental concern in forestry as a significant driver of resource availability for tree growth. The site index (SI) reflects the overall...
Site productivity remains a fundamental concern in forestry as a significant driver of resource availability for tree growth. The site index (SI) reflects the overall impact of all environmental factors that determine tree height growth and is the most commonly used indirect proxy for forest site productivity estimated using stand age and height. The SI concept challenges are local variations in climate, soil, and genotype-environmental interactions that lead to variable height growth patterns among ecoregions and cause inappropriate estimation of site productivity. Developing regional models allow us to determine forest growth and SI more appropriately. This study aimed to develop height growth models for the Scots pine in Poland, considering the natural forest region effect. For height growth modelling, we used the growth trajectory data of 855 sample trees, representing the Scots pine entire range of geographic locations and site conditions in Poland. We compared the development of regional height growth models using nonlinear-fixed-effects (NFE) and nonlinear-mixed-effects (NME) modelling approaches. Our results indicate a slightly better fit to the data of the model built using NFE approach. The results showed significant differences between Scots pine growth in natural forest regions I, II, and III located in northern Poland and natural forest regions IV, V, and VI in southern Poland. We compared the development of regional height growth models using NFE and NME modelling approaches. Our results indicate a slightly better fit to the data of the model built using the NFE approach. The developed models show differences in height growth patterns of Scots pines in Poland and revealed that acknowledgement of region as the independent variable could improve the growth prediction and quality of the SI estimation. Differences in climate and soil conditions that distinguish natural forest regions affect Scots pine height growth patterns. Therefore, extending this research to models that directly describe height growth interactions with site variables, such as climate, soil properties, and topography, can provide valuable forest management information.
Topics: Climate; Forestry; Forests; Models, Biological; Pinus sylvestris; Poland; Soil; Trees
PubMed: 33990666
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-89826-9 -
Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters Dec 2021Whilst significant progress has been made in recent years with respect to advancing health and education, the ESA region's young people still experience challenges in... (Review)
Review
Whilst significant progress has been made in recent years with respect to advancing health and education, the ESA region's young people still experience challenges in relation to their SRHR. This study brings together learning from the available data and reports, as well as the experiences of those closely connected with the process of affirmation/endorsement and implementation of the ESA Commitment between 2013 and 2018. Whilst challenges remain - particularly in relation to monitoring and accountability - the ESA Commitment has instigated notable progress, made possible in part by the emphasis on multisectoral collaboration between health and education sectors nationally and regionally. Sustained political, technical, and financial investment in young people's health and rights will ensure that the countries of the region are able to build upon these successes and deliver on their commitments to young people during this decade of action towards the realisation of the SDGs and harnessing the demographic dividend for Africa for years to come.
Topics: Adolescent; Africa, Southern; Humans; Reproduction; Reproductive Health; Reproductive Health Services; Sexual Health
PubMed: 34726585
DOI: 10.1080/26410397.2021.1982186 -
PloS One 2019Understanding biological community distribution patterns and their drivers across different scales is one of the major goals of community ecology in a rapidly changing...
Understanding biological community distribution patterns and their drivers across different scales is one of the major goals of community ecology in a rapidly changing world. Considering natural forest-grassland ecotones distributed over the south Brazilian region we investigated how ant communities are assembled locally, i.e. considering different habitats, and regionally, i.e. considering different physiographic regions. We used taxonomic and phylogenetic approaches to investigate diversity patterns and search for environmental/spatial drivers at each scale. We sampled ants using honey and tuna baits in forest and grassland habitats, in ecotones distributed at nine sites in Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. Overall, we found 85 ant species belonging to 23 genera and six subfamilies. At the local scale, we found forests and grasslands as equivalent in ant species and evolutionary history diversities, but considerably different in terms of species composition. In forests, the soil surface air temperature predicts foraging ant diversity. In grasslands, while the height of herbaceous vegetation reduces ant diversity, treelet density from forest expansion processes clearly increases it. At a regional scale, we did not find models that sufficiently explained ant taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity based on regional environmental variables. The variance in species composition, but not in evolutionary histories, across physiographic regions is driven by space and historical processes. Our findings unveil important aspects of ant community ecology in natural transition systems, indicating environmental filtering as an important process structuring the communities at the local scale, but mostly spatial processes acting at the regional scale.
Topics: Animals; Ants; Biota; Brazil; Ecosystem; Forests; Grassland; Phylogeny
PubMed: 30973953
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0215310